I love the aroma of this Cumulus Green Tea from Pelican Tea! The dry leaf has a warm fragrance from the cinnamon and habanero, but there is also a crisp, exhilarating note from the peppermint and a slightly fruity note … which I originally thought must be from the green tea, although I don’t usually smell “fruit” when I smell a gunpowder green tea, so I guess that the fruit note I smell could also be from the habanero, which is technically a berry, right?

Once brewed, I smell cinnamon and peppermint primarily, with background notes of habanero and green tea. It smells zesty, warm and inviting.

Mmm! This is really good! All the flavors have a really nice balance and each note seems to meld in a really harmonious way with the other notes. It is one of the more “fluid” tasting teas – that is to say, everything just sort of moves along in a very smooth, effortless, seamless way.

The sip starts out with the cinnamon and peppermint and these two notes are pretty well paired – they aren’t competing with one another, and they aren’t overpowering flavors. This doesn’t taste too minty or too cinnamon-y.

Next comes a very soft wave of heat from the habanero. The warmth of the habanero sort of builds on the back of the palate, but it never becomes a really strong flavor. It’s just a gentle sort of warmth. If I slurp the tea, I notice more habanero notes, but, even then, it isn’t a bold peppery flavor.

The notes of the gunpowder green are ever present in the sip, sitting there, in the middle of things, offering its sweet flavor and light lushness of green tea notes. There is a hint of smokiness to this too that is off in the background, and this marries especially well with the cinnamon flavor.

A really good tea. If the idea of a habanero infused tea is a little intimidating to you, I recommend starting with a tea like this one because it’s “gently infused” with the habanero, and that gentle infusion allows for enjoyment of the pepper without too much of the spice.

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see.

Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog!

Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!